Details

The monument includes the levelled remains of a bowl barrow situated on Arne
Hill in the Isle of Purbeck, overlooking the surrounding heathland and Poole
Harbour to the north east.
The barrow had a small mound composed of earth, sand and turf. This was
reduced during World War II, although it is known as an upstanding feature
visible on aerial photographs taken in 1952. Surrounding the mound is
a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the
monument. This has become infilled over the years but will survive as a buried
feature c.1m wide.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments
dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most
examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as
earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple
burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often
acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Often superficially similar,
although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form
and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving bowl
barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring
across most of lowland Britain. Often occupying prominent locations, they are
a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable
variation of form and longevity as a monument type provide important
information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early
prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period
and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of
protection.

Despite levelling of the barrow mound during and after World War II,
the bowl barrow on Arne Hill 200m south of Arne Dairy House will contain
buried remains including both archaeological and environmental evidence
relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was constructed. This
is one of several barrows to survive in the area surrounding Poole Harbour.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, 'Procs Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Soc.' in Dorset Barrows, (1959), 86
Other
Mention small mound, IAM,
Visible barrow remains, (1952)

Source: Historic England